How to Rotate Screen on Chromebook Easily

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Rotating the Screen on a Chromebook

Regarding screen orientation, Chromebooks borrow this renowned trait from Android smartphones. After all, Chromebooks have native support for Google Play.

Fortunately, it’s relatively easy to rotate the Chrome OS display, like on your Android smartphone. However, turning a Chromebook’s display is common when you accidentally press the wrong keys and the desktop shifts sideways.

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Rotating a Chromebook’s display can be handy when you’re flattening it to show content to people sitting across from you, but rotating the display isn’t always the ideal option. Fortunately, rotating it back is pretty straightforward.

This review will show you how to rotate your Chromebook’s display using the keyboard and settings. We will also look at how to rotate an external display hooked up to a Chrome OS PC; read on to find out more.

How Can You Rotate the Chromebook Display Using the Keyboard?

If you want to rotate your Chromebook’s screen in the easiest and most painless way, use the keyboard shortcuts Ctrl + Shift + Refresh (F3).

Upon clicking these keys simultaneously, a pop-up will appear on your screen. Only after you press ‘Continue’ on the pop-up will your screen rotate by 90 degrees. This pop-up will only appear the first time you attempt to rotate the display using the keyboard.

If you cannot use this keyboard shortcut, the ‘Function Key’ might be disabled in your Chrome OS settings. To fix this issue, follow the steps below:

Click on the clock in the lower-right corner of your screen.
Next, click on the ‘Settings‘ icon from the pop-up menu on your screen.
Once you’re inside the settings app, click ‘Device‘ from the window on the left.
Next, head to the tab on your right side and click ‘Keyboard.’
From the compilation of alternatives under the keyboard, activate the toggle associated with ‘Treat top-row keys as function keys.’

How Can You Rotate the Chromebook Display Via Settings?

This is the more extended method of the two; however, it gives you more control over your Chromebook’s screen orientation. Launching your Chromebook’s settings menu allows you to shift the screen orientation by 270 degrees without needing to press any key combo.

This should be your go-to method if you want to set a new screen orientation for your Chromebook from now on. However, if you don’t mind using a process that is no longer applicable to your Chromebook, follow the steps listed below to implement it.

Start by clicking on the clock in the lower-right corner of your screen.
Next, click on the ‘Settings‘ icon from the pop-up menu on your screen.
Once you’re inside the settings app, click ‘Device‘ from the window on the left.
Next, click on ‘Displays.’
Under ‘Orientation‘, click on the drop-down menu.
Next, choose your desired orientation, and you’re all set to go.

If you have a 2-in-1 Chromebook and have flipped your screen all the way around, the ‘Orientation’ drop-down menu will dim. Flip your Chromebook’s screen back into laptop mode to choose an orientation. When Chromebooks are in tablet mode, they override the ‘Orientation’ in display settings.

How Can You Rotate an External Display Hooked Up to a Chromebook?

If you have an external monitor connected to your Chromebook, Chrome OS allows you to adjust the orientation of the second monitor.

You can use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Shift + Refresh (F3) to change the orientation of your external monitor. If you want more control when rotating the external monitor’s desktop, follow the steps below, and you can do so from the settings menu.

Start by clicking on the clock in the lower-right corner of your screen.
Next, click on the ‘Settings‘ icon from the pop-up menu on your screen.
Next, click on ‘Displays.’ Here, you can rotate your external monitor instead of your Chromebook display by clicking on the dedicated button.
Finally, under ‘Orientation‘, click the drop-down menu to rotate the external display’s main screen according to your preferences.

Note: When you adjust your screen orientation

to rotate your Chromebook screen, your device will remember this command even after you shut it down or reboot it. Fortunately, you can revert it to its original state by checking the ‘Orientation’ settings.

Final Thought

The steps may vary depending on the specific Chromebook model and version of Chrome OS. It is recommended that you consult the official Chromebook support documentation.

To sum up, this review was about rotating a Chromebook’s display. We have discussed two methods for changing the screen orientation. Now, it all comes down to which method you prefer: use that one.